Christmas In July 2020-34

Good evening, and welcome to part 34 of our month-long celebration of Christmas in July! I wish I could say the fun is just getting started, but that's not strictly true. I may run a little bit over, but it's not going to last through September like has happened in the past. Too many things to do other than find and post Christmas music.  But we've got a little way to go still, so enjoy it while it lasts.  Here's what's in the download for tonight.

1. Christmas Tree Angel by Marni Nixon from Songs From "Singing Fun" (Bowmar 4x10" 78 RPM 1650/1651/1652/1653, Mono, 1956). This is one of the very few shares I pulled from 78 RPM shellac this season. And if memory serves, it was equalized with the normal RIAA curve, so I didn't have to do anything special with it like most older 78s.

2. Sing Gloria In Excelsis Deo from the anonymous artists at Jenson Publications from Music For The Choral Ensemble Vol. XV-Young Choir Edition (Jenson Publications 2xLP JP-3500, Stereo, 1983). Demo #1.

3. Navided Nuestra-La Huida (Vidala Tucumana) by Los Fronterizos-Cantoria De La Basilica Del Socorro-Directed By Father R.P. Segade-Conducted By Ariel Ramirez from Misa Criolla-From The Argentine-A Folkloristic Expression Of Religious Emotions (Philips (Netherlands) 6527 136, originally released 1964, Stereo, 1980). I dunno, these tracks haven't sounded all that Christmassy to me.

4. We Wish You A Merry Christmas by the anonymous artists at Silver Burdett Records from Making Music Your Own-Kindergarten Record IV (Silver Burdett Records 75 180 4, Mono, 1966). Not strictly a demo recording, but instead designed for classroom use.  Still no artist attribution, though.

5. The Christmas Song by Brookside Jr. High School Music Department-Symphonic Band-Bernard Rightmyer, Conductor from Winter Concert-Van Wezel Performing Arts Hall, 1971 (United Sound USR 4026, Stereo, 1972). To be honest, I didn't know the Van Wezel was this old, but I guess I have no real idea how old it is. It's right up the road from me, I see it all the time.

6.  Recession by The Texas Boys Choir-George Bragg, Conductor-Sydney Laudenslager, Harp from Britten: A Ceremony Of Carols-Gregg Smith: Bible Songs For Young Voices (Vox Turnabout TV-S 34544, Stereo, 1973). I think we're almost to the end of the tracks from this one. Sure were a lot of them.

7. Carol Medley by The Women's Ensemble Of Bethany Lutheran Church, Melodie Bollman-Director, Eleanor Peura-Accompanist from The Ensemble Sings (Century Advent Recording LRS-RT-6062 (Astabula, Ohio), Stereo). More music from Bill Medley's sister.  That's a joke folks.  Think about it, you'll get it.

8. Oh, Holy Night by The RCA Electronic Music Synthesizer from The Sounds And Music Of The RCA Electronic Music Synthesizer (RCA Victor Red Seal (Experimental) LM-1922, Mono, 1955). This one has a bit of a story behind it.  It's music made by a very early synthesizer, but that's not the story. The story is that I've had the record for years and years, and I could never get it to play without skipping. Every year I'd come back to it and try again.  Well, this year I finally got a decent rip out of it. I'm excited to be able to finally share this rare slice of history with you, even though it's not musically all that exciting. But try to imagine creating this music back in 1955, before the microchip, before a lot of the music making equipment we now take for granted. I've shared out other electronic Christmas music experiments in the past, but this is the earliest.

9. Bells, by what is probably a different anonymous artist with Jenson Publications, this time from Superior New Works For Concert Band Vol. XV-Advanced Edition (Jenson Publications JP-5100, Stereo, 1984). Demo #2 for the day.

10. The Skaters-Waltz by Robert Stolz And His Concert Orchestra from Kalman And Waldteufel Memories (London LL 143, Mono, 1949). I don't think this actual record came out in 1949, but the recording appears to date from then.  Some records I just can't pin a good date on.

11. January-By The Hearth by Yevgeny Svetlanov Conducting The U.S.S.R. Symphony Orchestra from Tchaikovsky-The Seasons (Columbia Masterworks/Melodiya 2xLP MG 35184, Stereo, 1978). We've heard a lot of music from this double album this month, and I'm still impressed by the music that came out of the then-Soviet Union to the USA. Pretty impressive to me.

12. White Christmas by The Murk Family With Accompanist Betty Bowman from Holiday Musicale (Sacred Knof Recordings SKR-LP-1170, Mono).  More music from our favorite musical family this month.

13. Glory To That New-Born King by Duke University Men's Glee Club-Paul Young, Conductor, James Young, Director from Duke University Men's Glee Club (Century 27105, Stereo). I've tried to make sure I spread things out as much as I could this season, so that it wasn't too loaded up with good stuff at the beginning and then nothing but dreck near the end. I don't think we've heard from these guys so far this year, so I've still got some new stuff to share with you.

14. O Holy Night by Maplewood Glee Club, Warren G. Schmoll-Director, Rosalind Dobie-Accompanist, Roy Stocker-Solo, Janice Nieman-Organist from Maplewood Glee Club 1965-Maplewood Community Recreation Service (HMR Productions RC-94 (AKA RC-134) Side 2-1965 Winter Concert, Mono, 1965). However, some records we just keep returning to again and again and again. Whoops, this is the second appearance of this song tonight. I try to avoid that when possible, but I let it slip through again.  Been a bad year for that.

15. One Little Candle by Fred Waring And His Pennsylvanians from This I Believe-Songs Of Faith And Inspiration (Capitol ST 2054, Stereo, 1964). Latter-day Fred, when he recorded pretty much his entire Decca catalog over again for Capitol. Well, almost.

16. Sound The Trumpet by Okemos High School Concert Choir from Sixth Annual Albion College Invitational Choral Festival (Delta DRS81-128, Stereo, 1981). Another record that we've visited again and again and again this season. And it looks like I've dropped sixteen tracks into the bucket again tonight. Hope I don't run out of tracks before the end...

That's it for now.  Gotta be something in there you like. And I keep forgetting to ask if you have any favorites from the month so far? Gotta be something in there you love and can't live without. Leave me a comment and let me know what you've loved. Or, if you prefer, what you've hated. That's fun too.

MEGA